1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a non-woven fabric employed as an aid in folding fabrics over a fold line and joining the so folded fabrics. This invention is directed to a continuous roll of fabric having certain specific perforated lines and the use of the same in garment manufacture, especially in belt construction, waistband construction, skirt and pocket pleats, cuffs, plackets, hems, and the like.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
In the manufacture of garments it is quite common to fold a first piece of fabric about a straight line and to sew the so-folded fabric to an abutting fabric wherein the abutting fabric is inserted within the folds created by the folding of the first fabric. Oftentimes the material is basted initially to align the fabric in a certain manner and to hold the fabric in the so aligned position while the operator performs an additional task with the second fabric. These operations require a certain skill -- the type of skill rarely found -- or skill which must be painfully taught over a long period of time.
For instance in the manufacture of ladies slacks or skirts having a waistband into which is inserted a panel of fabric, the waistband is folded at one edge when attached to waistline, e.g., 3/8 inch wide to form a folded or rounded edge. The other side of the fabric is also folded in the same way and the respective hems are placed in facing engagement with one another. A panel is inserted between these folded pieces and fabric is sewn whereby the garment has a finished appearance with a flat and even waistband. Obviously to insure that the fold lines are in alignment with each so as to provide a neat garment substantial care must be taken during the folding operation. Since the folding operation is quite tedious, the operator cannot feed the assembly through the sewing machine at the normally high rate. This markedly decreases productivity and increases production costs.
Of course, production can still be high if highly skilled workers are available. But much of fabric handling is an art and few people possess the ability to properly handle the fabric so that it stays folded about a line, or a pair of lines, while being passed rapidly through a sewing machine. The garment workers of today are largely unskilled or semiskilled workers who lack these arts.
The problem of fabric handling occurs in various areas other than the exemplified assembly of a waistband and panel. In the manufacture of pleats mechanical means have been provided whereby the fabric is folded about folding dies and immediately pressed beneath a presser to set the pleat. Such an apparatus is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,511,424. However, oftentimes it is desired to avoid the use of a press and to pass the fabric in folded and pleated condition through a sewing machine. Again laborious techniques must be employed to maintain the fabric folded or pleated about a straight line.
Still another example of the criticality of folding a fabric about a straight line lies in the turning of sleeve hems. A sleeve hem is made from a fabric by folding the fabric over a fold line at one end thereof. The fabric which passes over the main portion of the fabric becomes the hem material which can be used in alterations. The sides of the fabric on either side of the fold line are also folded and joined together to form the sleeve. Obviously, the folding to define the end of the sleeve hem is critical since any deviation will be immediately visible and severely detracted from the appearance of the fabric thereby impairing its saleability.
The use of fabrics, especially non-woven fabrics, as support material in the assembly of garments is broadly known. For instance, garment interfacing material has been used in the assembly of men's jackets such as in the breast section to provide support. Non-woven fabric has been used as aids in the waistband of a woman's skirt and in other areas where fabric support is desired. To this end there are sold numerous different non-woven fabrics which are in the form of a continuous unperforated (although perhaps needled) mats. They are continuous and unperforated in the sense that there are no open or free zones aside from the normal pores through the fabric itself. In fact short individual pieces of discontinuous non-woven fabrics having multi-directional perforations have been proposed in the special situation of pocket manufacture for men's jackets where the fabric reinforces the pocket welt as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,451,065.
It has become desirable, therefore, to provide a means for folding fabrics about a straight line which insures that the fabric will be kept in the folded condition when passed rapidly through a sewing machine, e.g., at a rate of 30 feet per minute or more.
It has also become desirable to provide a fabric supporting material which guides a fabric about a straight fold line whereby the resultant fabric will hold its folded position without use of a heated press and during passage of the same through a sewing machine.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a roll of a continuous fabric supporting material which can be employed in a variety of lengths simply by cutting desired lengths from the continuous roll.